You know art is important, but you can’t hold a conversation about it.

You enjoy visiting museums and galleries but don’t know which exhibitions are worth your time.

This is your ultimate guide to understanding and appreciating art. Structured like a university course syllabus, each section will build your knowledge base. By the end you will be able to:

• identify the building blocks of art and understand basic symbols and iconography

• build your art vocabulary— know key movements, styles, artists & artworks

• understand what makes art valuable & build your own sense of taste

• always be the first to know about top exhibits

• intelligently articulate your opinions about art

And most importantly, you’ll understand the value that art can bring to your life.

To get the most out of this course, I recommend completing one chapter per week. Of course, you can complete it quicker if you’d like to, but a week per section will allow you time to soak in the information, read the additional texts that interest you, and give ample time to visit museums or galleries to complete the practical assignments.

I’ve also created a PDF booklet to accompany the course. Inside, you can find summaries of each chapter and space to complete all of the practical assignments. Download the Study Guide Booklet below:

Study Guide: The Ultimate Guide To Art

3.73MB ∙ PDF file

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COURSE CURRICULUM

Introduction: Why Does Art Matter?

1. Practical Assignment

Chapter One: Reading Art

1. Spending Time With Art

2. Elements of Art

3. Practical Assignment

Chapter Two: Art History Essentials

1. What is Art?

2. Brief Timeline of Art History

3. Practical Assignment

Chapter Three: Crafting Opinions

1. Key Arguments in Art History

2. Methods of Art History

3. Articulate Your Opinion

4. Developing Your Personal Taste

5. Practical Assignment

Chapter Four: Living Life with Art

1. Art World Basics

2. Becoming an Art World Insider

3. Practical Assignment

Concluding Thoughts

Introduction: Why Does Art Matter?

Before learning about anything, we need to get clear on why it matters & why it’s worth our time. Since you clicked on this guide you probably already have at least a passing interest in art & a desire to learn more.

But let’s discuss the key reasons to learn about art so you can be extremely clear on why this matters to you.

• Connects us to other humans of the past & present.

• Inspires our own creativity.

• Teaches us about the social, political, and religious history of different regions across time.

• Reminds us of the power of slow looking. Increasingly important in modern society.

• Develops our personal taste & ability to articulate our feelings and emotions.

• Offers new perspectives and ways of thinking, either through the visual aspects or the questions it makes us consider.

Clearly there’s plenty of reasons to care about art & invest our time to understanding and appreciating it. It’s a way to elevate yourself, your way of thinking, and even the conversations you have. And it doesn’t have to be elitist or academic. Art can be appreciated by everyone, but the issue is that most people didn’t receive an arts education.

We learned to read before understanding classic literature. So in this course we are learning to read images so we can understand the masterpieces.

Practical Assignment

Each chapter will end with a practical element to help you apply the knowledge you just learned and make it more applicable to your own life. If you want the full ‘school’ experience, print out the PDF Study Guide Booklet included at the beginning of this article. It includes lesson notes & all of your practical assignments. Not only will this formalise the learning path for you, but your answers to each of the assignments will create a portfolio of your journey to understanding and appreciating art.

For those completing the practical assignment on their own paper, here is your assignment:

Wherever you are sitting, look around you. I want you to notice any art in the space with you. Maybe it’s a painting or photograph on the wall. Or maybe it’s the ceramic vase holding your flowers. Or a postcard taped to your fridge. Or even a sticker on your laptop.

Now, what if it wasn’t there?

I think in most cases, your life would not end if art wasn’t around you. But what would be missing? Does this art add colour or vibrancy to the room? Does it affirm a certain identity that you align with? Or does it make you feel a certain emotion when you look at it?

Art is, and never was, a necessity. That’s the beauty of it. But humans have been creating art for as long as they’ve lived, so there’s something about it that we clearly love. And in this assignment, your goal is to notice what art already exists around you and notice the value it adds to your life, however big or small.

To go one step further, I now want you think of the last time you visited a museum or gallery. Why did you visit? What were you drawn to? What stuck with you after you left? Don’t worry about this being super clear or cohesive, but it’s helpful to do this exercise now so you have a record of what was important to you before you completed this course. After the course you can review your answer and see if things have shifted or if you are still drawn to similar aspects.

Chapter One: Reading Art

When learning about anything, there’s a crucial step you have to make that will start to unlock everything. It’s learning the language of that topic.

Think of art like a conversation. There’s continuity jokes, references, and a variety of world views and opinions. Sometimes there’s questions being asked and sometimes it’s boastful statements.

And just like in a conversation, when you have more context, or information, you become a more engaged contributor.

In this first chapter we will cover the building blocks of art— the key elements that every artwork is made up of. With this knowledge you’ll be able to gain a basic understanding of any artwork, even if you know nothing about it.

Section 1.1 Spending Time With Art

A key theme of this chapter is slow looking. I think this is one of the most beautiful aspects of art appreciation. Looking at it carefully slows us down, allows us to take in the small details, and potentially notice something new. Too often we rush through a museum hoping to ~see it all~ only to essentially miss everything.

But what are you supposed to be doing when you’re looking at a painting? I think this is where most people get stuck. They can look at an artwork, but aren’t sure where to direct their attention. It can start to feel like a pointless exercise until you know what to look for.

The rest of this chapter will cover the aspects that can capture your focus and guide your eye through any painting. They are the elements that nearly every artist employs to communicate, through art.

Section 1.2 Elements of Art

These are they foundational elements that will help you understand the visual language of art.

Subject is what the artwork is depicting — the people, objects, or themes that the artist chooses to portray. Sometimes the subject is obvious, like a portrait or landscape, and other times it’s abstract or symbolic. The subject gives us a starting point for interpretation and can have some of the following impacts:

• the subject can reflect the values of its time — for example, religion in medieval art or everyday life in realist paintings

• choosing a common subject (like flowers or the human figure) allows the artist to experiment with style, technique, and meaning

• conversely, unusual or shocking subjects can provoke thought or challenge cultural norms

• the absence of a subject — like in some abstract works — can itself be a statement about art and perception

Lines guide how we view art. They create forms, define spaces, and direct our gaze through the work. Some examples:

• actual lines are visible in the artwork (like an outline of an object)

• implied lines are not truly there but are perceived; the viewer’s eyes follow these lines in the art (vanish point perspective is the perfect example of this)

Colours change our perception of a work. The same subject matter created in muted tones versus florescent colours will lead to an incredibly different meaning & perception. Colours can be adjusted to:

• show a realistic scene or one invented by the artist

• express emotions

• create emphasis

• add symbolic meaning

Textures can also be physical (like a rough canvas or thick layers of paint) or implied through visual tricks that fool our eyes. Employing texture can have the following impact on a work:

• add motion and direct our eye through the work (think of Van Gogh’s swirling landscapes)

• clearly define different objects or spaces

• add a sensory element— even if we can’t touch the work it still makes it more interesting for our eyes when there’s a variety of textures

• make objects seem more realistic by mimicking their true textures

Perspective is the word used in art to describe how we view the space created by the artist. If a work looks incredibly realistic, the artist has likely used a perspective that matches how we view the real world. Throughout history, artists have experimented with perspective and it can have some of the following impacts:

• creates a 3D space from a flat, 2D canvas which makes the work seem more realistic

  • the goal with this can sometimes be to trick the viewer’s eye into thinking the artwork is not actually art

• by contrast, some artists use a very flat perspective to emphasise the fact they are working on a 2D canvas

  • here, they remind us that this is art, and they don’t have to adhere to a perspective that seems realistic

• it can also allude to power or hierarchy by placing important figures and the focal point.

Symbols are a key elements in an artwork that carry meaning beyond their literal appearance. Artists have always used symbols to communicate ideas, values, or emotions, and learning to “read” them can unlock hidden layers of understanding. Here are some symbols that you’re likely to encounter when looking at art and what they symbolise:

• Mirror – vanity, self-reflection, or truth

• Keys – authority, access (often St. Peter)

• Scales – justice, fairness, judgment

• Lamb – innocence, sacrifice, Christ

• Lion – strength, courage, royalty

• Snake/Serpent – temptation, sin, evil; also rebirth (shedding skin)

• Dog – loyalty, fidelity (esp. in marriage portraits)

• Dove – peace, purity, Holy Spirit

There are also many symbols that serve as reminders of death, also referred to as memento mori. These include:

• Candle – the soul, passing of time, mortality

• Hourglass/Clock – time, life’s brevity

• Skull (memento mori) – mortality, reminder of death

• Soap bubbles – life’s fragility, the idea it can “pop” at any moment.

• Insects – decay, corruption, the natural cycle.

• Wilting flowers – beauty fades, life is short.

If we want to dive further into the deeper meaning of artworks, we can explore the art’s iconography. Iconography is the study of the symbols, motifs, and imagery in art that convey deeper meaning. It’s about reading a work of art beyond its surface to understand what the artist intended to communicate. It’s all about asking yourself why an artist chose to depict a certain subject matter in that specific way.

So, symbols are one way to dive into the work’s iconography, but some other examples are:

• the composition & placement of figures (is there a hierarchy? are the figures in a group or isolated? how do they interact?)

• gestures, poses, expressions, and clothing of the figures

• analysing the background, or setting of the scene— why was it depicted this way?

In essence, iconography is taking the step from looking at what is physically depicted to asking why it was depicted in that way. This is where we start to uncover the meaning of the work.

In the next chapter we will cover more about the historical context and artistic conversations that will help you gain a clearer understanding of iconography— and more importantly how you can understand what an artist is trying communicate, in any work.

Section 1.3 Practical Assignment

Reference your PDF Study Guide, or complete the exercise below before progressing to the next chapter.

Visit a local museum or gallery and spend 30 minutes looking at a single artwork. To guide your looking, answer the following questions about the elements of art you find in the work.

• Subject

  • What/who is being depicted? Is it clear or abstracted?

• Lines

  • How does the artist define objects or shapes? Are the lines real or implied? Notice if these lines direct your gaze and cause you to view the artwork in a certain order.

• Colours

  • List the 5 main colours used.

  • What does this add to the piece? Does it make it more/less realistic? Does it lead to a certain mood in the work?

• Texture

  • How is texture used in this work? Is it real or implied?

  • Which elements have texture?

• Perspective

  • Does the perspective make the work seem like it’s actually 3D, or does it look flat? Notice if this changes how you experience the work, or gives an illusion of hierarchy.

• Symbols

  • Are there any objects in the work that you think might have another meaning? Reference the list of symbols provided.

• Iconography

  • Considering all the notes you made, form an opinion about why the artist chose to depict the artwork in this specific way. It’s okay if you’re totally wrong— that’s not the priority here. This is a way for you to tie together all the visual elements to create a narrative about the work.

    • Example: I’m looking at a portrait of a man holding a skull. The lines are implied and the perspective seems 3D, so they’re trying to create a realistic looking scene. The colours are quite dull, mostly greys, browns, and some muted red. The clothing is full of folds and texture, and the soft looking feather contrasts with the smooth skull that the man holds. The skull is a symbol to remind us of death. I think the work is the portrait of a specific person since it’s so realistic, but because of the colours and symbol, I think it’s supposed to be about death. (I was looking at this painting).

Chapter Two: Art History Essentials

You already know how to read any artwork. The only issue is you’re missing some historical and cultural context that will provide a deeper understanding of the work.

So, this chapter will teach you the context of art. The key artists, movements, styles, and vocabulary you need to understand the history of art. This will serve as you backbone when you look at any artwork, giving you the ability to contextualise any piece you see.

After finishing the chapter you’ll be able to add dinner party anecdotes about famous artists and their masterpieces. But perhaps more impressively, you’ll be able to successfully deduce when any artwork was created. All because you learned the context of art.

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